Production of coated fabrics



March 13, 1934. c, ALT r AL PRODUCTION OF COATED FABRICS Filed sept- 22, 1931 Cornelia/1%, (Herman C. g NVEN ogs obancelof fz ff atented Mar. 13, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PRODUCTION OF COATED FABRICS Application September 22, 1931, Serial No. 564,282

10 Claims.

This invention relates to the production of coated fabrics, and more particularly, to the production of translucent shade cloth for window shades, and the like, of improved appearance.

Shade cloth comprising a fabric coated with a cellulose ester base has been known in the art for a considerable time. Such shade cloth to be satisfactory must be easy to clean, have great resistance to deterioration on exposure, and be durable. Besides such properties, shade cloth must be of satisfactory appearance, that is, it must possess a clearness when viewed by transmitted light, have a uniformity of translucency, a generally attractive appearance and a so-called smooth feel. These latter properties relate to the so-called eye value of the shade cloth, and the present invention is particularly concerned with the production of shade cloth of improved properties relating to eye value. Heretofore known shade cloth of this type has been fairly satisfactory as far as wearing qualities are concerned, but the appearance of the cloth leaves considerable room for improvement, particularly with respect to uniformity of translucency and clearness when viewed by transmitted light.

An object of the present invention is to provide a simple and economical method of preparing this type of shade cloth of improved clearness when viewed by transmitted light, of greater uniformity of translucency, of smooth feel, and generally improved appearance. A further object is to provide a method of preparing shade cloth-of greater durability. Other objects will be apparent from the description of the invention given hereinafter.

These objects are accomplished according to the present invention by applying a cellulose ester coating composition to both sides of a web of textile fabric, such as sheeting, subjecting the coated web to pressure, for example, running the web through a plate press or pressure rolls, and then applying a cellulose ester composition to both sides of the coated web.

In the single figure of the accompanying drawing is shown a cross sectional view of a piece of shade cloth prepared according to this invention. The web of textile fabric 1 has applied to both sides a cellulose ester coating composition 2 which, as shown in the drawing, is forced into the fabric 1, but presents asmooth, uniform, outer surface due to the pressure treatment. Reference numeral 3 denotes the second film of cellulose ester coating composition-which is applied to both sides of the coated web after-subjecting same to the pressure treatment.

The following examples are given to illustrate specific embodiments of the invention, although it is to be understood that the invention is in no way limited to these specific embodiments:

Example 1.To the web of sheeting weighing 2.7 ounces per square yard and having a thread count of 68x68 is applied on one side from 0.2-0.8, preferably 0.4, ounces of a coating composition as follows, parts being by weight:

The weights given above and throughout the specification include only the so-called solids of the coating composition, that is, they do not include solvents and diluents which may or may not be added, as desired, to obtain a coating composition of the desired viscosity. This coating composition may be applied in one or several coats and by any known means, the conventional doctor knife being the preferred form of apparatus for this coating operation.

A like amount of the coating composition is applied to the other side of the web, which is then, while the coatings thus applied are still in a plastic state, run through a plate press of the type usually employed for embossing, or through pressure rolls. The plates in the press may be smooth or may have a shallow engraving upon them, such as a Skiver grain, or the like. The pressure exercised by the plate press or the pressure rolls may be varied widely, but is preferably about 575 pounds per square inch.

After the pressure treatment, the same coating composition as above, 'or a similar one, is then applied to both sides of the coated web in sufficient thickness to give a total coating composition, weight of about 1.5 ounces per square yard on each side. This second coating may also be applied in any conventional manner, the doctor knife being preferred.

A shade cloth thus prepared is of the so-called translucent type and is of greatly improved appearance as compared with shade cloth as heretofore made, in which no pressure treatment is given to the cloth prior to application of the final coat of the coating composition. Due to the pressure treatment, the cloth is appreciably improved with respect to the uniformity of translucency and clearness when viewed by transmitted light, two properties of the greatest importance when the appearance of shade cloth is considered.

Example 2.-Shade cloth was prepared according tothe method set forth in Example 1, except that the coating composition had the following formula:

Parts Cellulose ester 22-40 Softener 15-30 Pigment 35-40 The preferred composition in this example was:

- Parts Cellulose ester 31 Softener 23 Pigment 46 The shade cloth prepared according to this example is similar to that obtained proceeding as in Example 1, except that the shade cloth is of the so-called opaque type, although it is to be understood that the shade cloth is by no means absolutely opaque.

The particular cellulose ester coating composition used in the present method, both before and after the pressure treatment, may be varied widely and need not differ from such compositions heretofore used in this art. Generally, cellulose nitrate is the preferred cellulose ester, although cellulose acetate or other esters may be used. A wide variety of softeners is available for these compositions, as is well known in the art. Among those most suitable are raw castor oil, blown castor oil, blown cottonseed or rapeseed oil, among the vegetable oil softeners; and the so-called solvent softeners such as dibutyl phthalate, dibutyl tartrate, ethyl tartrate, and the like. Obviously, the choice of pigments is extremely wide and includes those commonly used in the industry, or combinations of several pigments, depending upon the translucency and color of the shade cloth desired.

The improvement obtained in shade cloth material by the present method is quite unexpected, as the pressure treatment on the partially coated shade cloth not only securely anchors the coating composition in the cloth and thus improves the durability of the material, which might have been predicted by those acquainted with this art, but also improves the appearance of the shade cloth to a remarkable degree, increasing the uniformity of the translucency of the cloth beyond expectation, and also giving the cloth greater clearness when viewed by transmitted light.

Although thepresent, invention has been described as related to shade cloth, it will be apparent that the invention applies to other types of cellulose ester coated fabrics and the term shade cloth as used herein and in the appended claims is intended to include cellulose ester coated fabrics in general having properties similar to shade cloth.

As many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention may be made without departing fromthe spirit and scope thereof, it is to be understood that we do not limit ourselves to the specific embodiments thereof except as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. Method of preparing shade cloth comprising applying 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition including nitrocellulose, a softener and a pigment, to each side of a web of fabric, applying pressure to both sides of the coated web while the coatings are still in a plastic state, and then applying 0.7-1.3 ounces per square yard of a similar coating composition to each side of the coated web.

2. Method of preparing shade cloth comprising applying 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition including nitrocellulose, a softener and. a pigment,,to each side of a web of sheeting, applying pressure to both sides of the coated web while the coatings are still in a plastic state by running the coated web through a plate press or pressure rolls, and then applying 0.7-1.3 ounces per square yard of a similar coating composition to both sides of the web.

3. Method of preparing shade cloth comprising applying 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition including a cellulose ester, a softener, and a pigment, to each side of a web of fabric, applying pressure to both 'sides of the coated web while the coatings are still ina plastic state, and then applying a similar coating composition to each side of the coated web.

4. Method of preparing shade cloth comprising applying 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition including nitrocellulose, a softener, and a pigment, to each side of a web of fabric, applying pressure to both sides of the coated web while the coatings are still in a plastic state by running the coated web through a plate press or pressure rolls, and then applying a similar coating composition to each side of the coated web.

5. Method of preparing shade cloth comprising applying 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition including nitrocellulose, a softener, and a pigment, to each side of a web of fabric, applying a pressure of about 575 pounds per square inch to both sides of the coated web while the coatings are still in a plastic state by running the coated web through a plate press or pressure rolls, and then applying a similar coating composition to each side of the coated web.

6. Method of preparing shade cloth comprising applying 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition including nitrocellulose, a softener, and a pigment, to each side of a web of sheeting, applying a pressure of about 575 pounds per square inch to bothsides of the coated fabric while the coatings are still in a plastic state by running the coated web through a plate press or pressure rolls, and then applying 0.7-1.3 ounces per square yard of a similar coating composition to both sides of the web.

7. Shade cloth of uniform translucency comprising a fabric having a cellulose ester coating superposed on both sides of the fabric, said fabric having beencoated with from 0.20.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition comprising a cellulose ester, a softener, and a pigment, on both sides thereof, then subjected to pressure on both sides while the coatings were still in plastic state, and then further coated with a similar coating composition on both sides.

8. Shade cloth of uniform translucency comprising a fabric having a cellulose ester coating superposed on both sides of the fabric, said fabric having been coated with from 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition comprising nitrocellulose, a softener, and a pigment, on both sides thereof, then subjected to pressure on both sides while the coatings were still in a plastic state by running the fabric through a plate press or pressure rolls, and then further coated with a similar coating composition on both sides.

9. Shade cloth of uniform translucency comprising a fabric having a cellulose ester coating superposed on both sides of the fabric, said fabric having been coated with from 0.2-0.8 ounces per square yard of a coating composition comprising a cellulose ester, a softener, and a pigment, on both sides thereof, then subjected to pressure on both sides while the coatings were still in a plastic state, and then further coated with from 0.7-1.3 ounces per squareyard of a similar coating composition on each side of the coated fabric.

10. Shade cloth of uniform translucency comprising a fabric having a cellulose ester coating superposed on both sides of the fabric, said fabric 

